Photo by Joe Imel/Daily NewsNine-year-old Izzy Hunt (right) gets help Monday from 16-year-old Mathnasium instructor Chelsea Johnson.

Math lover Richard Hunt realizes not everyone enjoys logarithms and square roots quite as much as he does.

But he also maintains that it’s not the actual math people get frustrated with – sometimes it’s just the process of learning it.

In February, Hunt opened the doors to the new Mathnasium learning center, which provides students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade with a unique, individualized learning program.

But the program is far more than a homework-help center, as certified instructors at the facility on Fairview Avenue build personalized lessons for each student and cater to their learning style, whether auditory, tactile or visual.

“Children don’t hate math,” Hunt said. “They hate being confused and intimidated by math. With understanding comes passion, with passion comes growth.”

The Western Kentucky University math instructor said he began looking at opening his own franchise about a year ago, and kept coming across Mathnasium in his searches.

In November, he flew to California to learn more about what the program offered, and quickly realized he wanted to adopt the “compassionate” learning style developed by a 40-year-veteran teacher in Los Angeles.

The Bowling Green Mathnasium is the first in Kentucky, while several other nearby states have already jumped on board with the program. There are multiple sites in Tennessee, Ohio and Georgia.

Hunt said when a student and parent come to the center, they discuss the frustrations of both, as often parents can have a difficult time helping with homework each night.

The student is then given an assessment to determine what they have a grasp on and what gaps may need to be addressed in an effort to complement and supplement what they may be learning in the classroom.

A personalized learning plan is then developed, which includes a binder full of “prescriptive” workout materials full of pictures and visuals to help students actually see the math on which they are working.

“What we do is we engage the student in dialogue about the math problems,” Hunt said. “We don’t simply blurt out the answer to the child. We ask questions to make them think and want to talk their way through solving the problem. It deepens the comprehension and builds confidence. That way we can say ‘great job, high five, you did it.’ ”

The questioning process and observation process also reveals a lot about the way a child learns. Hunt said students who may be counting on their fingers may benefit from rolling dice and learning how to add visually.

Hunt said many students don’t know that when the number on the top of the die is added to the number on the bottom of it, it will always equal seven. So if a student rolls a three, they can assume the number on the bottom is a four.

“Then we can ask, what are the numbers on the bottom or what do the numbers on the bottom add up to,” Hunt said. “It’s a continuing math problem. We want them to explore in every way possible to develop an understanding and get the neurological correlation flying.”

Instructors at the facility must continue training through an online program called Mathnasium University. Several students seeking teaching degrees from WKU work at the facility, as do some Greenwood High School honors students.

Tana Hunt, Richard Hunt’s wife and instructor of the pre-kindergarten math group, said having the high school students has been a real plus because the types of math they are helping with is fresh in their minds.

“We just want the students to learn math in a way that will make sense to them,” she said.

Chelsea Johnson, 16, a junior at GHS, said helping the students has been fun and has helped her get better at math as she has learned easier methods to figure out problems.

On Monday, some of the instructors worked with the Hunts’ own children, who are also honing their math skills at the center.

Nine-year-old Izzy Hunt said she likes the one-on-one time with instructors because she can get help without feeling silly.

“At school, it’s embarrassing if you don’t get something and no one else raises their hand,” she said. “It’s embarrassing to do that.”

As 7-year-old Ivy Hunt worked alongside instructor Kaitlyn Thomason, she used peppermints to figure out her subtraction problems while getting to visualize how the process works.

“The math is easier because the (peppermints) tell me the answer by counting it,” she said.

Tana Hunt said the program is growing and plans to offer a summer program that is a “little more laid back.”

While the math learning will still be a priority, half the day will be spent on book exercises, while the other half will be spent playing math games.

Sara Jennings, a math teacher at Morgantown Elementary School, said she and her husband made the decision to bring their daughter to Mathnasium after noticing a slight slip in math after she made the switch to middle school.

“My husband and I are both educators, so we know the value of having good math skills,” Jennings said. “We have been extremely pleased with the progress our daughter has made since starting the program. Her attitude toward math in general has improved and she even made the comment that she likes math when she understands it.

“The great thing about Mathnasium is that we don’t have the frustrated arguments over homework anymore. She can take it in with her and get help if she needs it, but for the most part, she has the confidence to complete it on her own.”

—Mathnasium of Bowling Green is open from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Instructors can be contacted at 870 Fairview Ave. or at 904-0654. Summer program enrollment is currently under way.